Tag: Dragan Skočić

Team Melli instability continues to raise concerns.

The countdown to the start of the 2022 World Cup in Qatar has reached 134. While all the teams in the most important football tournament in the world have prepared their plans with the necessary support, resources, and detailed requirement in order to get the best performance tout of their teams, the case in Iran is quite different.

Team Melli is facing many challenges and struggling despite the fact that they qualified early and with many matches to spare. The crisis began after the dismissal of the Head of the federation, it is now embroiled in rumors of the impending dismissal of Dragan Skocic from his post as head coach of the national team.

“Behind the scenes, the intervention of people outside the football federation to bring about change has put undue pressure on the federation. Controversially several players of Team Melli are playing significant roles to push for change. Mirshad Majedi, the acting head of the Football Federation, entered the fray after seeing the two parties that had arisen among Team Melli players in stories supporting or criticizing Dragan Skocic, to end the matter for good by contacting them directly.
Majedi conveyed his displeasure about the behavior of the players to the senior members of the Iranian national team. He, who was surprised by the arrival of several new players in the recent camp of the team, postponed dealing with them to another time to show that he has decided to talk to the main players of the squad and calm the created atmosphere.

Among the strong supporters of Skocic, Azamoun and Taremi have been the most vocal. In an act of sedation, some new players, led by provocateurs are supporting the other side. The partisan is also clearly felt in the media which are taking sides, instead of encouraging stability and accepting the Croat.

The efforts of Majedi to change the atmosphere team’s dressing room have been counteracted by secret meetings in the corridors of the Ministry of Sports. Majedi, who no longer categorically dismisses Dragan Skocic’s departure, is now struggling with all kinds of demands to replace the Croatian head coach. The catalyst of these demands comes from the Ministry which has a long history of interference behind the scenes and applying all sorts of pressures to the extent of threats to get to their demands. In public, however, The Ministry always manitains the official policy of non-interference in FFIRI affairs and respect for the federation as an independent entity.

Some patrons of Carlos Queiroz have secretly held meetings with the officials of the Ministry of Sports during Majedi’s tenure as acting head and demanded the return of the Portuguese. Meetings that were supported and perhaps attended by several representatives of the Islamic Council (the Parliament) who demanded the explicit intervention of Hamid Sajjadi, the Minister of Sports in the affairs of the FFIRI. However, Sajjadi, aware of FIFA’s sensitivity to the subject and Iran being very close to being sanctioned because of several issues, including females attendance in stadiums, has announced that he will not get directly involved in the story, but an old Queiroz advocate who is closely related to Sajjadi has given strong indications of the return of the Portuguese man creating an atmosphere of insecurity and agitation.

 Will Skocic achieve his dream of sitting on the bench of the national team in the World Cup? Will Queiroz becomes the head coach of Team Melli due to external pressures? Will an Iranian option leads the national team? You have to wait a few more days to get answers to these questions

The Football mafia is at it again!

Team Melli lost to Algeria 2-1 in a friendly match in Doha, and that triggered the Iranian football mafia into action. It was like the ideal result for them to call for the head of the current head coach and calls for the former one to return at the helm of Team Melli.

Commenting on such scenario, Bijan ZolfagharNasab the former player and coach of the Iranian national football team who is currently an Advisor to the Minister of Youth and Sports, in reference to Dragan Skocic status, said: “He is the best option now and the atmosphere should not be made more polluted than what is now.”

Team Melli training camp was attended by the Iranian Minister of youth Sports Hamid Sajjadi who held private meetings with senior players such as Omid Ebrahimi, Ehsan HajSafi, Mehdi Taremi, Sardar Azmoun, Alireza Biranvand, and Alireza Jahanbakhsh the night before the match. A meeting in which the players complained about the process of preparing the team for a respectable representation of the country in the FIFA World Cup in Qatar.

After the 2-1 loss, a result that would not be so critical to any national team in a friendly match, rumors were circulating about the possibility of a change in the coaching staff and the departure of Dragan Skocic less than five months before the start of the first game against England, with the typical name of Carlos Queiroz mentioned in addition to Javad Nekounam as possible replacements.

These rumors intended with malice were accompanied by an official reaction from the Ministry of Sports and Youth regarding interference in technical issues and the selection of the head coach of the Iranian national football team. Mohsen Motamedkia, head of public relations at the Ministry of Sports, said: “The absolute position of the Ministry of Sports and Youth has been to support the decisions made by the Football Federation (FFIRI) from the very beginning, and this position still stands.”

“The Ministry of Sports and Youth has no input in technical matters and only acts as a supporter and a patron behind all sports federations, including the football federation.”

Referring to some rumors, citing yesterday’s meeting of six national team players with Hamid Sajjadi, he noted:” The Minister knows and is aware of sports etiquette well and is fully acquainted with the position of the technical staff, and this meeting was requested by the supervisor and The technical staff of the national team was held and they listened to the concerns of these players for nearly two hours on behalf of the other players and in the presence of the team leader and member of the board of directors of the federation. “

In an interview with Mehr, Bijan ZolfagharNasab commented on criticism of Dragan Skocic: “I think we have witnessed one of the sloppiest games of the Iranian national team in the last decade. We ran after the ball without a purpose and had no strategy to win.” The Adviser to the Minister of Sports then commented on whether it is necessary to change the coaching staff of Team Melli before the 2022 World Cup in Qatar: “I do not consider it appropriate to change the current situation. I think we have little chance until the World Cup games. Any change can be to our detriment. Dragan Skocic has done very well and should not be judged by a technical error in a friendly preparation match. “

Zulfiqar Nasab clarified the rumors of the return of Carlos Queiroz: “Mr. Queiroz worked hard for national football, but if he was going to do something worthwhile, he would have done it in the eight years. he was at the helm.  I do not know what changes are going to happen to Team Melli with his presence, which is not possible now. Taking command of the national team at this stage does not cure any pain. We came to a conclusion with him anyway,”

About Skocic, ZolfagharNasab “He kept his faith in these same players. Skocic is the best option at the moment”

As for lack of forward planning and poor management in the Football Federation particularly in arranging friendly international matches for Team Melli: “Unfortunately, there is no sign of planning.  The national team needs preparation for games with teams like England and Wales that have a high physical form. “The former coach of the Iranian national team noted: “We have a very difficult job with the current conditions to qualify out of the group. We can not stand to be counted against the best in the world by relying on the individual ability of the players. This team’s success is a long and complicated process. It needs a chain from the management of the federation all the way to the team players.

Team Melli will be meeting the former African Champions Algeria Sunday evening in its only preparatory international friendly, in Doha Qatar.

Although Team Melli and all other national team age groups for this matter have historically been one of the weakest teams in terms of preparation and readiness, in FIFA World Cup and other tournaments such as AFC Asian Cup, this time, it must be the worst in its history and puts Iran football reputation to shame.

After what looked like a cesarean operation, the Algeria match was finally confirmed, following a series of cancellations against Canada, Uruguay, New Zealand, South Africa, and Oman.

The match against Algeria this evening is quite a good test despite the African team missing their star player and Manchester City winger Riyadh Mehrez. The coach Djamel Belmadhi, a familiar character against Iranian teams, is under great scrutiny for failing to lead his team to qualify for the World Cup 2022.

Djamel Belmadi is determined to revive the mighty Algerian team and has announced before that he will not leave his post with the national team and instead will remain in charge of their qualifying campaign for the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON), which will be held in Ivory Coast.

Belmadi had come under mounting criticism following a disastrous defense of their 2019 AFCON title.

At the 2021 edition of the tournament in Cameroon earlier this year, Algeria finished bottom of Group E having taken just one point from three matches.

‘The Desert Warriors’ also failed to qualify for the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar after they lost to Cameroon on away goals in their play-off tie.

Belmadhi urged players who wanted to join the team to come up with a fighting spirit as former Algerians did years ago.

Djamel Belmadi showed himself determined to end this second Greens training camp in Doha in the best possible way, “we were keen to play a third match during this international window.

The game against Iran is a good opportunity to gauge our team. he said at the microphone of the FAF. Coach Belmadi revealed the direct line that the Algerian team will follow for the friendly against Iran, “we will approach this match in the most rigorous way. We will not ignore the culture of winning, if only for a friendly match. he adds.

Aware of the work that awaits his men for his second term at the head of the Algerian selection, the 2019 African champion kept the pressure on his players away, “it is a team in reconstruction. We are going to face a selection that has its automatisms in place, while we are working to find them. It’s a great test for the Algerian team. he explains.

As far as Skocic is concerned, this match remains the only confirmed opportunity for him to watch his player play against a strong opponent. Of course, it is far from adequate preparation and this could be an excuse too for failing in the finals. Skocic remains culpable for this failure to prepare the team for the greatest tournament in the world.

It is hardly unlikely that Skocic will touch the lineup as he will use this match to check on his main players. The many new faces will only play second string while Algeria is re-building.

Team Melli to meet Algeria in Doha

Team Melli, currently in a training camp in Qatar, Qatar is scheduled to meet with Algeria as announced by the Football Federation of Algeria.

Iran has previously held talks with several African football federations, including Congo, Cameroon, and Algeria, to play a preparatory game on FIFA Day in June. South Africa was also the latest possible opponent of Iran, which, with the announcement of its head coach, planned to play against our national team on June 14 in Doha.

However, it seems that the meeting with Algeria in Qatar has been decided for the Team Melli and Iran can have at least one friendly international game. This is the news announced by “Salah Bi-Abboud”, the director of communications and public relations of the Algerian Football Federation. “What is certain is that Algeria will play against Iran in Doha on June 12,” he told Algerian National Radio. There is an agreement between the two teams. We are waiting for the formalization of affairs at the level of organization and logistics.” The director of communications of the Algerian federation announced that after the official announcement, this news will be published on the website of the Algerian federation.

Tow previous games vs Canada in Vancouver and Ecuador were scheduled in Canada, but political interference lead to the unilateral cancellation of the match by pressure from the Canadian government. Next, Iran planned to travel to Uruguay and play with the national team of this country; This did not materialize due to the difficult logistics and objection of Iran’s head coach Dragan Skočić.

FFIRI has not confirmed the news of Algeria match.

Uruguay match called off!

After the cancelation of the Canada and Ecuador matches. Uruguay was named as a strong candidate for a friendly but today, it has been announced that Dragan Skočić is against traveling thousands of miles to Latin America to play a friendly match between Iran and Uruguay.

The friendly match between Iran and Uruguay was not singed off due to the opposition of the Head Coach of Team Melli. originally, the Football Federation had planned to travel from Qatar to South America because the Team Melli calendar was void of any matches on FIFA Day, but due to the availability of several well-known African teams, these options are more favorable, which is why Skocic has opposed his team’s departure to Uruguay. The Iranian Football Federation is negotiating with several African teams such as Cameroon, Algeria, and Congo to arrange three friendly matches in Qatar. None of these countries have suggested that it will be playing against Iran, though.

Earlier, the FFIRI was also in negotiation for a match against Senegal but nothing came out of that either.

Iran is the only qualified team for the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 that has no friendly match on its calender until the World Cup Group C match against England.

Skocic rep[laces the Esteghlal dropped players. Kananizadegan told to leave too.

the list of Team Melli changed after the expulsion of Hossein Hosseini, Mehdi Mehdipour, Amir Hossein Hosseinzadeh, Aref Gholami and Saleh Hardani from the national team training camp.

y the decision of Dragan Skocic, Payam Niazmand, Soroush Rafiei, Armin Sohrabian, Saeed Sadeghi, and Mehdi Shiri are the players who have been invited to the Team Melli camp instead of the 5 dropped Esteghlal players. On the other hand, Mohammad Hossein Kananizadegan is another player who has left the national team camp. Kanaanizadegan, who went to the Olympic Hotel where the national team was staying yesterday, is apparently unable to accompany the national team in the upcoming friendly matches due to a disciplinary and ethics committee’s ban, and hence he was removed from the national team list. Instead of the Kananizadeghan, Seyed Mehdi Hosseini from Mes Rafsanjan was invited by Skocic.

According to the plan, the Team is scheduled to leave for Qatar today and hold several preparatory matches in Doha and most probably in Uruguay, if the terms for the friendly is agreed.

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Dragan Skočić, drops 5 Esteghlal players from Team Melli camp.

Team Melli head coach, Dragan Skočić, dropped 5 Esteghlal players from the national team training camp today. According to press reports, Skocic removed the names of 5 players after their “no show” for training. Hamid Estili, the manager of the national football team, told ISNA: “These players were supposed to introduce themselves to the national team camp at 5 pm yesterday (Monday) and then get a release to go to the Esteghlal’s camp with the permission of the head coach, but they did not do so. They neither turned up nor informed us. They went directly to their club’s camp.”

The Esteghlal players are : Aref Gholami, Seyed Hossein Hosseini, Mehdi Mehdipour, Amir Hossein Hosseinzadeh and Saleh Hardani. It is not clear if this move by Skocic is a long term one, but it seems that these player’s chances of making it to the trip to Latin America are quite slim, but more importantly, it will be even a slimmer chance of anyone of them making the final list to the World Cup unless a strong reason is provided by Farhad Majidi, the team’s head coach and the Esteghlal management.

Esteghlal has won this seasons League title undefeated. They received the trophy yesterday after the match against Naft Masjed Soleiman.

UPDATE

In the latest development, Esteghlal club swiftly reacted to the dropping of the players by issuing an official apology!

The statement read: “Following the recent events which resulted in the expulsion of Esteghlal players selected for Team Melli training camps, we would like to inform the general public that the club has always acted in good faith in interacting with the national football team of the Islamic Republic of Iran, and considers itself obligatory to help the country’s representatives. In the recent case, unfortunately, despite the previous announcement of Team Melli’s head coach on the importance of the attendance of all players from the first day of the camp, there were discrepancies (..) in the planning of last week’s league matches, which caused negligence of our part. The team Melli leader issued a disciplinary action. Esteghlal Club is aware of its role in this incident and accepts its responsibility.

Therefore, while supporting and apologizing to Mr. Skocic for interrupting the national team training camp, we ask him to reinstate the 5 dropped  Esteghlal players to the camp. Attending the camp and wearing the national team’s sacred shirt is the pride of Esteghlal Club. The club management supports and wishes Mr. Skocic and the Iranian national team all the success in their quest for the World Cup in Qatar, emphasizing our backing for the national team.”

Dragan Skocic bemoans the surreal status of Team Melli

Dragan Skocic, finally reacted to the unsatisfactory state of the team’s preparation, as well as the cancellation of the Iran-Canada friendly match on FIFA day, by issuing a statement. In this message, Skocic criticized the federation and its officials, who these days are more concerned with lobbying and holding the federation assembly than with the national team and the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022.

in the message on social media, Skocic said: “It seems that the rift between the executive members of the federation,  and holding of the Football Federation Assembly has taken a priority over more important issues such as Team Melli readiness for the World Cup, the preparations, and meeting the technical and logistical needs of the team. Those are no more the first priority of the relevant authorities. In the current surreal situation, the professional and ethical duty of the coaching staff and players is to do whatever they can with all their might to maintain their greatest asset of the national team, which is the passion and the hopes of the Team Melli fans right across the world. It is the sacred right of every Iranian to know more about the national team, especially what has passed and will pass on this valuable time from the beginning of the World Cup qualifiers until today.
The Croat coach ended his message by saying “That is why I will talk about this in detail in the next few days at a press conference.”

Squad announced for June training camp

Dragan Skocic invited 25 players to the upcoming training camp starting next Monday.

Team Melli will start the training in Tehran and then move over to Istanbul before flying to Canada in preparation for the friendly international with the host country in Vancouver.  A second match was planned but never materialized.

With the injured players such as Ghoddos, Khalilzadeh, Amiri, and Pouraliganji not available for selection, Skocic added the name of two former members of Team Melli to the list, Omid Ebrahim and Ali Alipour. Notable absentees due to loss of form mean the exclusion of Mehdi Ghaedi and Kaveh Rezaei from the list.

 

Team Melli Captain Karim Ansarifard and the current AEK Athens player is the major absentee from this camp and will not accompany the national team for a long time. While the current situation requires players to secure their place in the World Cup final list by performing well with their clubs and attending training regularly, Karim was severely injured in a freak accident in the national team’s previous camp on Nowruz 1401, during a birthday party when a cake was pounded on his face, Due to that eyes injury, he also missed the game against Lebanon. As a result, he was away from training for a while and on his return, he had to conduct his training with goggles. Since his injury, Ansarifard has not played in any of his team’s matches and usually plays for a few minutes, and has now lost his place in Team Melli

Skocic has replaced  Ansarifard with Ali Alipour so that the forward who plays in the Portuguese league with Gil Vicente can finally recover after a three-year absence from the national team and may be able to improve the national team’s offensive line.

 

No. Pos. Player Date of birth  Age Caps Goals Club
GK Alireza Beiranvand 12-Sep-1992   29 50 0
 Royal Antwerp
GK Hossein Hosseini 30- May-1992   29 4 0
 Esteghlal
GK Amir Abedzadeh 26 -Apr-1993   29 9 0
 Ponferradina
DF Sadegh Moharrami 24 -Mar-1996   26 18 0
 Dinamo Zagreb
DF Aref Gholami 23-Apr-1997   25 1 0
 Esteghlal
DF Milad Mohammadi 29-Sep-1993   28 45 1
 AEK Athens
DF Hossein Kanaanizadegan 23-Mar-1994   28 32 2
 Al-Ahli
DF Saleh Hardani 14-Sep-1998   23 2 0
 Esteghlal
DF Majid Hosseini 20-Jun-1996   25 16 0
 Kayserispor
DF Omid Noorafkan 09-Apr-1997   25 12 0
 Sepahan
DF Aref Aghasi 02-Jan-1997   25 0 0
 Foolad
MF Ehsan Hajsafi (Captain) 25-Feb-1990   32 118 7
 AEK Athens
MF Saeid Ezatolahi 01-Oct-1996   25 44 1
 Vejle
MF Alireza Jahanbakhsh 11-Aug-1993   28 61 12
 Feyenoord
MF Ahmad Nourollahi 02-Jan-1993   29 23 3
 Shabab Al-Ahli
MF Milad Sarlak 26-Mar-1995   27 8 0
 Persepolis
MF Omid Ebrahimi 15-Sep-1987   34 52 0
 Al-Wakrah
MF Amirhossein Hosseinzadeh 30-Oct-2000   21 2 0
 Esteghlal
MF Mehdi Torabi 10-Sep-1994   27 34 6
 Persepolis
MF Ali Gholizadeh 10 -Mar-1996   26 23 6
 Charleroi
MF Mehdi Mehdipour 18-Feb-1994   28 2 0
 Esteghlal
FW Mehdi Taremi 18-Jul-1992   29 57 27
 Porto
FW Sardar Azmoun 01-Jan-1995   27 62 40
 Bayer Leverkusen
FW Ali Alipour 11-Nov-1995   26 3 0
 Gil Vicente
FW Allahyar Sayyadmanesh 29-Jun-2001   20 6 1
 Hull City

Team Melli news update.

Team Melli is preparing fror the friendly match against the Canadian national team on the morning of June 6. As per the announcement of the Canadian Federation, 50 people can be included in the list of Iran’s squad traveling to Vancouver for this match. FFIRI has also prepared a list of names of people who can accompany Team Melli on this trip. According to the list that will be soon submitted by head coach Dragan Skocic, the FFIRI will proceed with the administrative affairs related to issuing visas. Between 23 to 25 players will be selected plus the coaching staff and the support group, medical kits, and Culinary team are expected to be included in the list. It is also expected that security agents and undercover police be part of the group keeping an eye on the players.

Dragan Skočić

The Croatian head coach of Team Melli who has recently returned to Tehran from his holiday is just about to announce the final list of the Team Melli’s squad traveling to Canada. One major absentee will be Saman Ghoddos who is still on the injury list and not fully fit for competitive matches.

Skočić is still hoping that the federation could find a second opponent in Canada as it seems that the Ecuador match is in doubt.

Karim Bagheri.

The Football Federation of Iran FFIRI has crossed out Karim Bagheri’s name from the list that was submitted to the  Canadian Consulate in Istanbul, Turkey, for visa application. Karim Bagheri’ was given the choice to be either a part of the Team Melli coaching staff full time or maintain his post as assistant in the Persepolis team. Due to the requirement of Team Melli at this stage, the federation did not find it feasible for Krim to hold both posts simultaneously.

Dragan Skocic, the head coach of the Iranian national team, along with the executive officials of the Football Federation, have opposed the simultaneous presence of Karim Bagheri in Persepolis and the national team regarding the national team’s qualification to the 2022 FIFA World Cup. Therefore, the name of Karim Bagheri has been removed from the ranks of Skocic’s assistants, and he will definitely not accompany the national team on his trip to Canada.

Khodadad Azizi

On other hand, Mirshad Majedi, the acting head of the Football Federation, with the approval of the executive and technical committee of the Iranian national team, has agreed with the appointment of former Team Melli star Khodadad Azizi as part of the coaching staff during this trip to Canada. Azizi has been included in the list of visa applications. It seems like the possibility of his permanent presence as a replacement for Karim Bagheri is a serious possibility.

Mirshad Majedi

The acting head of the FFIRI is likely to head the delegation to Canada although it has not been confirmed yet. The Canadian Federation has requested in its contract the presence of the highest official of the federation on this trip for the possibility of negotiations of cooperation development, mutual agreement on future friendlies, and other areas of support between the two federations.  Therefore, Majidi is likely to accompany the national team on their trip to Canada.

Istanbul Camp.

The Football Federation has planned a mini-camp in Istanbul which allows  Skocic to train his player for at least three sessions in Istanbul. Apart from physically obtaining the visas, the squad will most probably have to travel to Vancouver through Istanbul anyway, so that created an opportunity for a mini-training camp that Skocic duly agreed uupon.

The Canadian connection.

the Football Federation of Iran and its Canadian counterpart expressed concern about some adverse comments regarding the match. The bad propaganda against Iran’s visit and the match in Vancouver are not sport-related and it is meant to negatively influence the potential attendees against the Iranian regime.  In this letter, the Football Federation of Iran, according to the clauses in the contract, has demanded stern action by the authorities against any kind of political protest and anti-regime slogans in the stadium.  It also demanded that the match be held in a complete sporting atmosphere and not spoiled by politics

. The Iranian Federation has stated that any political gathering during the presence of the Iranian convoy in Vancouver should be stopped and the necessary guarantees should be given in this regard. In the contract for this meeting, the host country has given a full commitment that it will not allow any formally and planned political protests. However, the Iranian Football Federation is waiting for an official response from its counterpart to ensure this. Canada responds explicitly The Canadian Federation, in response to a letter from the Iranian Football Federation, has announced that it has signed a contract with Iran as an independent body and will provide a full guarantee for the match without any political interference.

Letter of appreciation

 The second letter of tFFIRI to Canada includes thanks and appreciation for the response of Soccer Canada against political meddling and its rights to arrange friendly matches as it deems necessary for Team Canada.  The letter mentioned in part that Soccer Canada is an approved and independent body and that nothing could be expected but to maintain transparency and commitment to the contract signed by the country that will host the 2026 FIFA World Cup. Termination of this contract will only be possible under extreme conditions or unpredictable events and hence “force majeure” will be activated. If the game between the two teams is to be canceled under the “force majeure” conditions, no compensation will be awarded to either party.

Friendly with Albania

FFIRI  was negotiating with several federations for friendly games in Doha amongst them was Albania. This UEFA member is currently occupying 65 places in FIFA Ranking against Iran’s 21st. Albania never qualified for any world cup in its history and hardly has any famous name on its national team. Yet, this team demanded a large fee for the match plus all expenses paid by FFIRI for the Albanian squad.

FFIRI respectfully turned down the Albanian demands, however, the audacity of the Albanians seems to be laughable!!!